The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to turbine engine components and, more specifically, to replaceable seals used with turbine engine components.
Known turbine engines operate according to well known principles wherein an incoming stream of atmospheric air flows through the engine along an axially-extending flow path. In at least some turbine engines, at least a portion of the incoming air is compressed in a compressor section of the engine and is then mixed with fuel and ignited in a combustor section to produce a high-energy, high-temperature exhaust gas stream. The hot gas stream exits the combustor and is channeled through a turbine section that extracts energy from the exhaust stream to power the compressor and to provide useful work, such as powering an aircraft in flight or producing electricity.
In the compressor and turbine sections of known gas turbine engines, blades rotate about the center axis of the engine. At least some known blade tips rotate in close proximity to a surrounding engine casing and may rub an inner surface of the casing. Engine efficiency depends at least partially on minimizing leakage in an effort to maximize interaction between the gas stream and blades. Within known turbines, one source of inefficiency is leakage of gas past the tips of the blades and between the blade tips and the surrounding engine casing. Although a close tolerance fit may be obtained by fabricating the mating parts to a close tolerance range, such a fabrication process is costly and time-consuming
As such, to increase engine efficiency, at least some turbines use a sealing element along the inner surface of the casing, to reduce leakage between the blade tips and the casing. Various sealing techniques have been used. Generally, known sealing elements lose effectiveness over time and may require replacement. However, in order to replace known sealing elements, the engine casing and the rotor must be removed from the engine to provide workers access to the sealing elements. Such a process significantly increases the maintenance costs and may cause a prolonged duration in engine outages.